Meet our SustainaBILity Ambassador
By: Jenna Cordesius & Bill Judd
I am so thrilled and honored to introduce to you, our new sustainaBILLity ambassador, BILL!
Bill shares a passion for sustainable living and truly embodies what it means to stand up for what we stand on. Bill is a seasoned traveling gnomes and attends Garden, Inc.’s adult day program. He is known for leaving each destination cleaner than when he got there; whether that means picking up a piece of trash he found en route to our local coffee shop, or cleaning up the trails we hiked on in the jungles of Costa Rica. Bill has agreed to sit down with me and discuss different ways that The Traveling Gnomes can travel more responsibly.
Question: Bill, tell us a bit about yourself!
Answer: I am great, and I am awesome. I am almost 59 years old. My birthday is coming up on January 7th. I am excited to be the sustainability ambassador for The Traveling Gnomes. When I am not traveling or in the day program, I pick up the recycled plastic blue wrap from hospitals around the area and drop them off for work.
Question: Where have you traveled with the Gnomes?
Answer: Steamboat Springs, Colorado! Also, Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica! I love the ocean, down by the sea shore. You get great views. I’ll be traveling to New Orleans, Louisiana this year as well as Banff National Park in Canada. I also would like to travel to Aspen, Colorado and Crested Butte, Colorado.
Question: You are very passionate about sustainable living, on a daily basis what do you do to take care of our planet?
Answer: I like to recycle garbage, and compost garbage. I like to help my friends decide what should go in the recycling, compost, or trash. I enjoy sorting this out too if it needs to be done! I pretty much know everything that needs to be recycled vs. composted due to years and years of practice. I do this just about every day!
Question: Do you have any tips or tricks on how The Traveling Gnomes can travel a bit greener?
Answer: Yes! We need reduce our green house gas emissions. We can do this by utilizing more fuel efficient vehicles and carpooling or taking public transportation to our destination or to the airport. We can also do more research in finding more energy efficient products. When we are traveling to a new destination, we should shop and support the local businesses. This is a no brainer, but everybody should always be traveling with re-fillable water bottles and re-usable shopping bags as well. Any chance we get to reduce, reuse, and recycle will go a long way in our travelers.
Question: Do you have any advice for our future travelers or last thoughts?
Answer: We need to think a little bit harder and use what’s in the attack upstairs to consciously traveling a bit greener. I’m excited to keep our travelers accountable individually and as a group on future trips!
Although it can be hard to travel sustainably, Bill and I want to ensure that our neurodiverse travelers (primarily first-time travelers) are equipped with the right tools and resources to ensure that we are doing are part to promote a healthy environment. Comment below if you have any additional ideas or suggestions!